Q5 — Analyse a published extract (4 marks)

Question: Read the extract below and identify two descriptive techniques the writer uses. Explain the effect of each.

"Fog everywhere. Fog up the river, where it flows among green aits and meadows; fog down the river, where it rolls defiled among the tiers of shipping." — Charles Dickens, Bleak House (1853)

Mark scheme (4 marks):

• 1 mark: identifies repetition / anaphora of "Fog".
• 1 mark: explains effect — creates oppressive, suffocating atmosphere; mirrors confusion of the legal system (pathetic fallacy).
• 1 mark: identifies personification (fog... rolls defiled) OR listing/parallel structure.
• 1 mark: explains effect — gives the fog agency, as if it is alive and corrupting; immerses the reader in the city.